


A New Body for Lup

by thing1_mea



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Barry Bluejeans and Lup in Love, Body Dysphoria, Canon Trans Character, F/M, M/M, Magical Transition, Post-Canon, Post-Episode: e067-069 Story and Song Parts 1-3, Trans Female Character, Trans Lup (The Adventure Zone), debates about necromancy, gender euphoria, magical body dysphoria, supporting a trans friend whose getting a new body, supportive friends, why is gender euphoria not a tag yet?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-24
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-14 12:26:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,372
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29667264
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thing1_mea/pseuds/thing1_mea
Summary: Lup is getting a new body! The Raven Queen has approved and she'll be allowed to use Barry's tank to grow a new body. Hopefully, that body will fit her as well as the one she left. After all, the magic she'd used in her transition hadn't changed her DNA
Relationships: Barry Bluejeans & Taako, Barry Bluejeans/Lup, Kravitz/Taako (The Adventure Zone), Lup & Taako (The Adventure Zone)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 27





	1. Getting the News

**Author's Note:**

> Content Warnings (for the whole fic):  
> A lot of talk about dysphoria  
> Some talk about transitions  
> Talk about unsafe transition magic which caused scarring  
> A brief almost-sex scene, but not enough to tag it as mature, just kissing  
> A lot of talk about genitalia, especially boobs and vaginas

Taako was naked as the day he was born when he walked into his room from the adjoining bathroom where he'd been showering. This wouldn't be a problem, except his boyfriend chose that exact moment to RIP a doorway from the astral plane to Taako's room. 

"Krav!" He jumped, pulling his towel down from his hair to his crotch, "New rule. No teleporting into my room." He adjusted his towel to sit on his hips as he cast disguise self on himself to bring his appearance back to its usual charm. 

"Yeah," Kravitz was staring at the floor blushing so hard Taako thought his face might actually have warmed up from it, "that’s a good idea."

Taako grabbed his wand off the bathroom counter and quickly his mage hand was zipping around the room grabbing clothes from drawers. He slipped back into the bathroom briefly and emerged fully clothed. He had picked out a loose long skirt and a baggy sweatshirt. He sat down on the floor right in front of where Kravitz had sat on the bed. Kravitz took the hairbrush he was offered and began to gently pull Taakos damp hair into an intricate braid. 

"I have some exciting news," Kravitz said, "that's why I didn't think before popping in."

Taako nodded, "ur good dude, it's not like that's the first time you've seen me like that," he shrugged, "quite the shock when I was still dripping and naked though."

"Yeah, I can imagine," he smiled, "wanna hear some exciting news?" 

"Hells yeah!"

"The Raven Queen has officially approved-"

"I'M GETTING A BODY!" Lup's voice rang through the apartment. 

Taako turned to face Kravitz to see if this was true. Kravitz nodded with a smile, the pure hope on his boyfriend's face made him melt. 

Taako quickly jumped up from his place on the floor and pushed Kravitz against the bed in a kiss. His hair, half braided, dropped against his back as Kravitz wrapped his arms around Taako. 

Taako pulled back, "The Raven Queen’s letting her have a body again?" Tears were forming in his eyes at the thought of reuniting with his sister. 

Kravitz nodded with a giant smile, "and Barry had that note with her kiss on it so we've got some DNA to use for the machine." 

Taako stilled for a moment, deep in thought. If this was DNA-based... but of course Kravitz wouldn't have known.

"What?" Kravitz asked. 

Taako shook his head. He made a mental note to talk to Lup about this privately later. "Nothing," he told Kravitz. He kissed Kravitz's forehead and pushed up off the bed, "gonna go find the lich." And with that he was running off, braid still half done, to see his sister. 

There was so much celebrating in their house for the next week. Despite the fact that she couldn’t eat, Lup insisted Taako make all sorts of tasty meals to celebrate her impending body. Kravitz, Barry, the Raven Queen, and Lup met frequently to discuss the details of what would and wouldn’t be allowed in the process. She was to have her old body back once. With Lup and Barry’s new position they would be able to move between their lich and corporeal form with more ease, but building a new body through necromantic magic was “risky business” and they didn’t want to “break the laws they were enforcing”. 

Taako got to hear two different accounts of each of these meetings: the excited gibberish from his sister who would float around the house squealing with delight and hope, and the technical arguments Barry and Kravitz would have in the kitchen trying to decide the best way to go about the process. Barry wanted to do it the way he knew how and didn’t have much patience for Kravitz’s endless questions and concerns about his process. They’d begun building the body 2 days after she got the green light, but Kravitz was still “fussing with the details” too much for Barry. 

Despite the constant talks, Taako hadn’t heard any consideration for what the body would look like. Not the way he was worried about it at least. Of course, there was a chance Lup just hadn’t talked to him about it. But Lup definitely would have talked to someone about it if it was on her mind. So Taako went looking for Barry. 

He found him, as expected, with his head in a book looking really focused. Taako knocked softly on the door as he strolled in. The gentle sound startled Barry and he turned to look at the noise. 

“Oh,” he said upon recognizing Taako, “How’s it going?”

“Good,” Taako said, “Hey has Lup talked to you about her new body?”

Barry’s eyes narrowed, “Yeah, just about every second she gets.”

Taako bites his lip, “Yeah that was a dumb way to ask that. Has she talked to you about the- about what that body’s going to look like?” He asked. 

Barry stared at him, still not understanding, “Well I’m guessing it’ll look like Lup.”

“Right,” Taako said, running his hand over his face, “I mean it’s using DNA right?” He asked. 

Barry nodded.

“So then her body will be based on her DNA?” Taako asked. He wasn’t certain how this process would work. He needed Barry to help him fill in the gaps. 

“Yeah, we already got some of that on the note she left us,” Barry picked up the rest of the note off the table in front of him. 

Taako glanced at the note, just the sight of it stung his chest. He looked back at Barry. “Barold will the transfiguration spells that she had on her body stay through the whole process if they didn’t change her DNA?” He asked. 

Barry stared at Taako for a moment, “Transfiguration spe-” The realization dawned on him, “Wait the spells you cast didn’t change her DNA did they?”

Taako shook his head, “No I wasn’t a good enough wizard. We were kids. By the time I was powerful enough she was happy with the body she had. Said she didn’t want to go through another physical transition cause she didn’t feel the need to.”

Barry nodded as he began to pour through the books in front of him, “So the DNA we’re using won’t have any of the physical modifications you two worked to give her when you were young?” 

“I mean I don’t know much about necromantic magic dude, but I looked back at the spells the two of us cast way back when and the most advanced ones did some regional DNA changes to give her some different features in her lower region. But her lips, the same as the day she was born.” 

Barry nodded and furrowed his brow further, “Okay, she should already know that right? Like this won’t come as a surprise to her? Have you already talked to her about it?” 

“She hasn’t said anything to me and I figure it’ll dampen her mood. But I can’t imagine she’s unaware. I mean she cast about half of the spells herself, she knows they were surface-level stuff. We still share the same DNA,” Taako said.

“But she would know that this is a concern,” he asked

“Yeah, if she’s thinking about this at all,” Taako said, “And I’m sure she is. I mean she hasn’t shut up about the whole thing. There’s no way she hasn’t considered that this body might- Might not look like the one she lost.” 

Barry nodded as he continued to scan the pages of his book, “I’m not finding anything helpful here. I might ask Kravitz. He should have some more insight into this.” He sighed, the idea of having to ask Kravitz for help seemed to shame him at least a little. 

“Yeah about that,” Taako said, “In addition to wounding your pride by asking for help, the K man still doesn’t know Lup is trans. So we’re gonna have to bring this to her attention before we get any answers on it.”

Barry sighs and sits back, “Yeah ok. I can talk to her about it, then I’ll talk to Krav if she’s cool with him knowing.”

Taako nods, “I mean yeah that works. While you do that, I’m gonna start refreshing my memory on the spells that we used before. Gonna see if there’s a smarter way to go about this if we have to do it all over again. So just tell her I’m looking into it whenever she wants to talk.”

“Won’t she want to do that stuff herself? She did it back then,” Barry asked. 

“She might,” Taako conceded, “But also she hasn’t studied transfiguration since she finished transitioning. Not to brag or anything but that’s kind of my thing now. The final decision’s hers obviously, but I just want to give her all the options I can find.”

Barry smiles, “Yeah that sounds like a good plan. I’ll talk to her tonight if she’s in a good mood.”

“Good luck dude,” Taako says.

“Thanks,” Barry said, “I’m gonna look through this stuff again, see if I missed anything.”

“Nice,” Taako started to leave the room, “Oh by the way Kravitz is staying over tonight, and you two are not invited to dinner. So I’ve officially claimed the kitchen for the night.”

Barry rolled his eyes as the door shut behind him and picked up his stone of far speech to tell Lup they’d have to get food elsewhere tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Kudos and comments are appreciated!  
> I've got a lot of this written I'm just finishing up, so updates should be pretty regular until it's published.


	2. Strarting Important Conversations

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Barry talks to Lup, then Taako talks to Kravitz. Nothing is set in stone, but they start important conversations.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The same trigger warnings from the last chapter apply here

Lup sat across from Barry at the restaurant. He was having some pizza while she told him about her meeting earlier that day with the Raven Queen and Kravitz. It was a lot of conversation about the boring parts of their contract. Barry had a similar meeting scheduled two days later. 

“Lup,” Barry said, swallowing down his bit of pizza and preparing for an awkward conversation, “I was talking to Taako earlier, and he brought up an interesting point.”

“We do not need a dog in the house. I hate it when Magnus’s dog runs right through me. It drives me wild,” she said, preempting the argument she’d had with Taako the day before. 

“No,” Barry laughed, “No it wasn’t about dogs. Though I 100% agree with you on the dog front. Also doesn’t Kravitz not like dogs?” 

“That’s what I said! Kravitz hates being near them cause they always try to eat his arms off,” She was getting excited. 

Barry couldn’t help but smile. As much as he wanted her there physically, being able to talk to her again was everything. She was easily the most exciting person he’d ever met. 

“Ok,” she said, “What did you and Taako talk about.” 

“Right,” Barry sat up straight again, “So the magic used to form your new body is based on your DNA sample.” 

Lup nods. Barry can’t read her expression. He has no idea what she’s thinking. 

“Well Taako said that a lot of the transfiguration spells the two of you cast when you were kids didn’t affect your DNA,” He said. He was watching her closely. Looking to see any glimpse of discomfort or anger. He couldn’t see anything. At least he couldn’t see it through the fog of her lich shape. 

“Yeah they didn’t,” She stated. Barry could hear the discomfort now. He could tell she would rather be anywhere but having this conversation, “There was one, but it was regional. Wouldn’t have affected my lips.” 

“Yeah, that’s how Taako remembered it too,” Barry admitted, “Now I’m not certain that DNA is the only thing the chamber bases things off of. The magic could pick up on formational experiences too. It’s really hard to tell.”

Lup’s form nods. 

“I was thinking we could talk to Kravitz about it. He’s probably got a better idea of how the necromantic magic would work than either of us. Not that he’s better at it, he’s just dealt with this stuff a lot longer than us,” Barry suggested. He was trying to be gentle, but he didn’t know how. Lup gave him no indication of how she was feeling. It was as if she’d shut down her emotions. Her form sat still and if her expression changed it was too imperceptible for him to make out in her form. 

After a long moment, Lup responded, “Kravitz doesn’t know yet.” 

Barry nodded, “Yeah.” He couldn’t think of anything else to say. 

“I’ll have Taako tell him. Then you guys can figure it out,” she said, “I- I guess I kind of let myself forget that I’d had to build that body. I mean it was so long ago. I just- I hoped that since this was magic it would remember the magic.” Her voice was flat. She was hiding her emotions behind it. If she’d been here Barry would have other ways of reading her, her eyes, her ears, the way her nose twitched when she was trying not to cry. 

“Yeah and it still might work like that Lup, that’s why we need to talk to Kravitz. We just- we don’t know yet,” he said. 

She nodded again and Barry saw her form shimmer slightly. 

“Lup,” He said, worry pounding through his veins, “Lup what’s wrong.” Realistically he knew he wouldn’t lose her over this. He knew that she was tied to earth by him and Taako and so many other wonderful things. But seeing her form shake always scared him. It always reminded him that their undeath was not promised. 

“I’m fine, just talk to Kravitz,” she insisted as she rose from her seat. Barry’s pizza was half-finished. 

“I thought you wanted Taako to do that?” He said, watching her carefully. She wasn’t shimmering or shaking anymore, but his heart was racing. 

“Yeah sure whatever,” she moved toward the door slowly. 

Barry pushed his chair back and went to put his hand where he imagined hers to be. It wasn’t the same, not even close, but it was something. He could feel her presence and she had said that she could too. Her form stilled. It solidified some. He could make out her hand- he had guessed right and was holding it with his own. 

“Lup it’s gonna be ok. We’ll get you through this,” he whispered the promise. 

“I know,” she said. The emotion in her voice went from 0 to 100. He heard the tears she couldn’t shed, “It’s just. I let myself forget about it because it- when I was in that fucking umbrella it forced me to dissociate. I couldn’t- I didn’t have a body. The body I was supposed to have wasn’t mine. I didn’t have a form. And that all felt vaguely familiar. I couldn’t place it and I never thought much of it but- but that’s why. It felt familiar ‘cause it was how it used to get back- back when Taako and I were kids.”

Barry watched her for a moment, wishing he could promise she’d never feel that way. He wished that he could make it all better, make it so she would never hurt like that again. 

“I just- I hadn’t made that connection and it kind of caught me off guard,” she said, “I’m ok though,” she lied. 

Barry moved in front of her and took her other hand in his, “Lup I promise you I will do whatever I can to make sure you never have to feel that way again. Between the four of us we’re the most powerful wizards on the planet. We’re legends. We can find a way to get you a body that feels like it’s yours.”

For the first time that night he could make out her expression, a smile seemed to appear behind the shadows of the red fabric that was hiding her ears, “We’re legends,” she repeated. 

“Exactly.” He put his forehead forward to meet hers. 

If Lup had had a physical form Barry would have seen her relax. He would have seen her ears regain a little bit of the perk they’d lost. Her dimples would have been showing as she pecked his nose with a kiss. She would have squeezed him tight and never let him go because somehow he made her feel safe. He would have grounded her when her head was in the clouds. Barry would have seen the tears dry from her cheeks as she whispered her gratitude in his ear. 

They didn’t have that though, yet somehow Barry still knew. 

She couldn’t, yet somehow Barry still knew. 

  
  


When Kravitz arrived for their date he expected Taako to be dressed and cooking in the basement. He instead had to wander the house to find his boyfriend hunched over a pile of books and scribbling a list into a notebook. He was so focused he had let his disguise self charm fall. His simple yet gorgeous face was scrunched in deep concentration. 

Kravitz knocked softly on the door to his room, not wanting to spook him. Taako looked up at the door in amazement, “Dude what time is it?”

“6:30,” He said. 

“Well damn, I guess someones on time then,” Taako said, getting up and turning off the desk lamp, “Give me 5- no 10 minutes to get on a decent outfit and I’ll be down.”

“Is there food downstairs yet?” Asked Kravitz, not to be rude but just to make sure Taako’s distracted brain had remembered something.

“Yeah,” he said, “I had made us some fucking superb sandwiches a few hours ago, they’re best chilled so they’re in the fridge. I wouldn’t forget the food,” he promised. 

“Alright, I’ll see you downstairs,” Kravitz said. 

The sandwiches were in fact superb. Kravitz delighted in his as Taako told him about the latest news with the school. The plans were extremely vague and Kravitz suspected Ren would have more of a hand in the curriculum than Taako, but Taako was excited just the same. 

The two talked about nothing of consequence for hours, jumping around topics from the Raven Queen’s recent music choices (disco?) to Taako’s upcoming trip to neverwinter for a cooking show. As the night wound down the pair made their way up to Taako’s bedroom. Lup and Barry were still out so they had the house to themselves. 

When they opened the door Taako saw his books strewn about his desk and his shoulders slumped. As if on cue his stone of far speech lit up, he turned it to the channel for Barry. 

“Hey Taako are you there?” said the nerd.

“Yeah,” he said, “Kravitz and I just finished dinner. Are you guys going to be home soon?” He winked at Kravitz who blushed. 

“Um, well we don’t have to be, but um, I talked to Lup and she said you’re good to tell Kravitz.” 

“Oh,” he stared at the stone and rethought his plans for the night, “Well way to change the mood Barold.” 

“Sorry,” he said, “It’s been a bit of a night.” 

“She okay?” he asked. 

“Yeah, it was just a lot.”

“Wait so she hadn’t thought about it?” he asked. That seemed unlike Lup. She was usually on top of these things.

“Said she was letting herself forget,” Barry explained. 

Taako shrugged, “Fair enough,” he paused for a moment, “She’s cool with me telling Krav though? She doesn’t need to be here?” 

There was a muffled sound on the other side and Taako could hear Lup’s voice off in the distance, “No,” Barry came back, “She said you’re good. Anything to make the process smooth.” 

“Yeah totes,” Taako said, “Alright well I’m gonna hang up then and,” he let out a deep sigh, “Have a deep conversation instead of boning down.” 

There was a choked sound on the other side and Taako could hear Lup laughing at Barry in the background, “Ok, bye Taako.” 

With that, the glow faded from the stone of farspeech and Taako turned it off. 

“What are you telling me about?” asked Kravitz.

Taako walked over to his desk, “Well first I’m going to apologize because Barry just robbed you of a fantastic night of this,” he said with a flourishing gesture to himself. 

Kravitz smiled, “Another time, this seems important.” 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Taako admitted as he looked through the papers on his desk. He found a list in his own handwriting and looked it over for a moment. 

“What’s that?” asked Kravitz. 

Taako sighed and turned to face Kravitz, “Ok so Lup’s whole body growing thing is a little more complicated than she’s told you. She’s transgender.” 

Kravitz’s eyebrows knit together and he nods slowly, trying to piece together exactly what this changes and how this will affect the process. 

“So that DNA you guys are using is actually identical to my DNA,” Taako continued, “Lup and I did a ton of different transfiguration spells on her when we were kids,” he passes the list to Kravitz, “These are all the ones I can remember. My memory isn’t perfect though so there's a chance I forgot some. I’m gonna run the list by Lup and see if there’s any I forgot or any she succeeded in doing in private.” 

Kravitz studied the list, the spells weren’t shocking to him even if the whole conversation was. These were pretty typical body transfiguration spells and were relatively low level. “No higher-level spells?” 

“Nope,” Taako said, “By the time we learned those, Lup was pleased with her body and wanted to get into more pyro-magic. I had a natural knack for the transfiguration so I continued that path ‘cause I’m awesome.” 

Kravitz nodded, “Ok so what can I do about this? I mean that’s all great and- I mean I don’t know what the supportive thing to say is when you find out your boyfriend's sister is trans but good for her?” 

Taako smiled and shrugged, “I mean it’s not something she ever talks about anymore. It happened, it’s over, and now she’s Lup.”

“Sure,” Kravitz says, “I mean I guess I don’t see where I fit into this. Why am I being told now?” 

“So she’s getting a new body back right?” Taako asks. Kravitz nods. “So ideally when she floats into that body and takes control it’s her body,” he says with a lot of suggestion in his voice. 

“You mean the one she left?” Kravitz asks. 

“Yeah, like it looks the same. It’s got the same bits.” 

Kravitz nods thoughtfully, looking over Taako’s list of spells, “Right. Ok, I can look into this. My instinct tells me it won’t, but I’m not sure. This whole process is made up of some tricky necromantic spells and they’ve got a lot of contingencies.” Taako watched him as he ran his finger down the list thinking deeply, “All of these spells were cast before the DNA sample was left right?” 

“Yeah, they were all done before we even got to the town where we joined the IPRE. Like I said we did all this a loooong time ago, like before I even started cooking. Back when the word cooking meant something less magnificent.” 

Kravitz smiled and nodded, “I’ll look this over,” he looked up to Taako, “Tell Lup thanks for trusting me and I’ll see what I can find.” 

Taako smiled, “Will do, and I’ll make sure that list is the full and accurate one. She was a sneaky dufus back then too so there's a chance she didn’t tell me about a few.”

Kravitz nodded and took Taako’s hand, “You’re a good brother,” he said sincerely. 

“Babe,” Taako bit back a smile, “We talked about this. Sincerity is allowed like twice a week max and you already told me how good my food is today.” 

Kravitz rolled his eyes and kissed Taako’s forehead. There was never a chance of Kravtiz following this rule, “Sorry, just had to be said.”

“Did it though?” Taako asked, “Cause I think you could have just not said it.” 

Kravitz shrugged and leaned in to kiss Taako. Taako put a hand up between them, “sorry babe, as much as I want to, we just talked about my sister’s bits for way too long for me to get sexy with you right now.”

Kravitz nodded understandingly and pulled back, “What if we went outside and watched the stars? The moon base should be passing over soon,” he said. 

Taako smiled, this man was perfect, “Yeah that sounds good.”


	3. Laying it all out on the table

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for reading! Hope you're enjoying the story!

Taako sat down at the kitchen table next to Kravitz with a thick binder. Barry and Lup were sitting across from him and everyone was confused. 

“What is this Taako?” asked Barry. 

“So I’ve been doing some research,” he announced, opening up the binder in a very dramatic fashion to reveal a collection of handwritten notes and pages he’d torn from books. 

“Are those my books?” asked Kravitz and Barry simultaneously. 

Taako didn’t answer, “So Lup. I’ve got like 5 options for how we’re gonna get your body ready for you.” 

“Wait but are those my books,” Barry asked again. 

Lup raised an eyebrow, “Ok so why can’t I just read the binder? I mean I can read and am capable of making this decision.” 

“Whose books are those Taako?” asked Kravitz. 

“Boys I think you’re missing the point. We’re all here for you Lup cause we all support you and also because you’re really good at fire magic but this project doesn’t really involve fire,” He gestured to Barry who was trying to figure out if he recognized the page Taako had glued on the first sheet, “Barry is here to give the necromantic opinion,” he gestured to Kravitz, “Kravitz is here to tell us if our ideas are ‘legal,’” he used air quotes around the word legal, “And I’m here cause I’m gonna perform the spells probably. There is a fifth option if you don’t want that, but we’ll get there.” 

Lup nodded, “Alright cool, but can you just tell these dorks whose books these are from so they can focus on me?” 

Barry immediately focused back on Lup, “No it’s not that it’s just-”

“Babe it’s okay,” Lup cut him off, “I know how important your books are to you.” 

“Yeah they’re definitely your books,” Taako said, “I’ll give you the binder in the end and I’m sure you can mend them.” 

Barry put his head in his hands, “Ok just get on with the options, I’ll deal with that later.” Lup’s spectral arm found its way to Barry’s back, though Taako swore he could see a glint of mischief in her eyes. 

“Before we get to the options, there’s an unfortunate preamble, Kravitz?” He turned to Kravitz. 

Kravitz took a deep breath, looking at Lup, and gave her the bad news, “I can say with near certainty that this body will more resemble Taako’s body than the body you left back in the cave. The body is built by magic, but its base is DNA. Because the DNA we have wasn’t affected by the spells it is improbable that the chamber will be aware enough to craft the alterations you made in your youth.” 

“Damn,” she whispered, “Okay yeah. That sucks.”

“It does,” Kravitz admitted, “I’m sorry.”

“You didn’t write the rules of magic,” She said, then turned to Taako, “There are other options.” 

“Hell yeah, we’re not just gonna leave you like that,” he said, “5 options remember.” 

Lup’s head seemed to nod. 

“Alright option one,” Taako said, “I do a super cool 3-day long spell before you go into the body that just changes the DNA and therefore changes the structure of the body. Barry and Kravitz, your thoughts?” He offered the conversation up. 

Kravitz jumped in first, “Taako seems convinced that this will work, but I’m afraid that since the DNA doesn’t match the body your lich form left you won’t actually be able to control or possess this new body.” 

“And I said,” Taako cut in, “That this body will match your soul better than the old one so that shouldn’t matter.”

“Shouldn’t but might,” Barry added, “We all agree it shouldn’t matter, but the magic is really blurry and rough around the edges, so we just don’t know if it will work. And if it doesn’t it might not be as simple as switching it back and putting you in the body that was in there. There’s a chance that any magical change to this body beyond the growth itself will make it unable to bond with you.”

Lup nodded, taking everything in for a moment. She turned to Taako, “You can do the spell?”

“Yeah no problem,” Taako said. 

“And you think it’ll work?” 

“I mean yeah, I feel pretty certain it’ll work actually.” 

Kravitz sighed, “Yes but to be fair you’re the one at the table with the least amount of experience with necromantic magic,” he turned to Lup, “You see why Barry and I are concerned this will complicate the process too much for it to be successful right?” 

Lup nodded, “Sure yeah I get it. But like, is there a downside to trying?” 

“Yeah,” Barry said, “There’s a chance I have to wait 3 more months to hold you.” There was a heaviness in his voice as he looked longingly at her spectral form. 

Lup sat still for a moment weighing the options and looking between her love, her brother, and Kravitz. She didn’t seem to land on anything, “Taako what’s option 2?”

“Well actually first there’s option 1.5 which is mostly an explanation of why there aren’t six options. So I looked into this spell and doing it on your body once you’re in it,” he dramatically flipped the binder open to the appendix which was labeled ‘Failed ideas’, “And according to a lot of accounts the process of using this spell is physically and emotionally traumatizing on a body and soul and can permanently change your soul to the gender your body is changing to.” 

“Well, shouldn’t that at least be an option?” Lup asked, “I mean it won’t change my soul anyway,” She looked for Barry for confirmation. 

Kravitz interjected, “No. First of all, it might change your soul, because the gender of a soul-changing is not the only potential negative effect. Even powerful wizards have struggled to keep this spell under control. There have been instances where this spell has killed people, and in a few isolated cases powerful wizards have turned the person into a Lich.”

“But I’m already a Lich,” Lup argued.

“Yes,” Kravitz said, “I know. And performing a spell that could attempt to turn you into a Lich again is unknown territory. Best case nothing changes, worst case your soul is destroyed and lost forever.” 

“Oh,” she said, “What are the odds.” 

“The odds do not matter,” Kravitz says, before Barry or Taako can confirm that the chances of things going wrong are only about 30%, “This spell is illegal to cast. It’s too dangerous to do on a body containing a soul. There’s a reason transgender people across our land are unable to simply use this spell. Maybe someday in a few centuries, a safe spell to change the sex of a body that contains a soul will be discovered, but for right now we’re stuck with what we have: a concoction of spells that can approximate this spell without the risk of destroying your soul.”

“Hmph,” Lup grumbled as she sunk further down in her chair.

“Sorry, dear,” Barry said. 

“Whatever, what’s option 2?” she said. 

“Option 2 is we do everything exactly the same as we did when we were kids,” Taako says as he switches to that page in his binder and turns it to face Lup, “here’s the list I have and Kravitz says you gave him your own list which I am very curious about.” 

Lup nodded, “Yeah there were some I didn’t do ‘til we were a little older,” she said looking over Taako’s list.

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Asked Taako. 

Without even looking up from the list Lup said, “Cause the spells we used to cast were about appearance, these ones were about sensation.” 

Taako nodded while he tried to hide his slight blush, “I mean that’s fair.” 

“So you would just cast all of these again?” she asked, “How long would that take?” 

“That would take about 4 days total and I’d need you to be casting spells too especially if there's a secret list of sex spells.” 

“Barry actually cast some of the spells,” she told him. 

In an instant Barry’s face was redder than Lup’s robe, “Ok that was only during a few cycles, you were much better at them.” 

“Alright,” Kravitz said, switching the topic as quickly as he could, “So the benefits of this one are we know it will work and it breaks no laws.” 

“And the downsides?” Lup asked, turning to Taako.

“Well it depends on what you want Lulu, if you want to have your old body back then we can definitely do it without the scars from our fuck ups,” Taako said, “but there are other options that are a little more sophisticated down the line.” 

“Ok let's hear those,” she said. 

“So you’ll have to read through options 3 and 4 to understand the differences, but they’re basically just some cool transfiguration shit that’ll probably take like 2 days to do. They’re basically the basic ‘transition package’ according to the scrolls I found and this guy I talked to in Neverwinter. These ones can both be done on your body after you get out so that we don’t run the risk of you not getting into the body.”

“Can they be done beforehand? Do they change DNA,” she asked Taako. 

Taako looked to Barry and Kravitz. Barry spoke up first, “I mean in theory, yes, but again there’s a chance that doesn’t work, and then we’re back to square one.” 

“Ok and you would be performing these spells?” she asked Taako.

“Yeah so here's the downside to this one. I would have to perform these cause they use my transfiguration stone and are super rad high-level spells, but they also allow for a lot of customization which means you’re gonna have to give me a detailed list or a picture of what you want to look like,” Taako said, spinning his pencil in his hand. Kravitz and Barry were both awkwardly looking at the table. 

Lup met Taako’s eyes, “So you’d be in charge of shaping my tit’s and my ass,” she asked. 

“I mean I would be following your instructions but yeah,” he said. 

“Why are these better than option 2?” she asked.

“Cause you get the internal stuff too. You would have everything any other female elf had except for the DNA. It’s basically option 1.5 without the DNA change and a little more customization. But you’d be physically indifferent from any other female elf,” he said. Then added, “Except like, super-duper hot cause you’d still look a lot like me.” 

“Gotcha, so like, hypothetically I could get pregnant?” she asked. 

This caught Barry’s attention and suddenly he was looking at her. 

The question caught Taako off guard and suddenly he was inspecting his notes and Barry’s torn book pages, “Give me like two seconds.” 

Barry put his hand on Lup’s lap. She turned to him, “I just want to know everything. I remember that I couldn’t get pregnant with the other spells and I also didn’t get a period cause it was surface level.” 

Barry nodded, knowing this would be a longer conversation later, but not one he wanted to have with Taako and Kravitz. 

Luckily Taako spoke up, “So I think so probably, however honestly that might be a question for Merle when all this is done. Or you know, a competent cleric.” 

Kravitz looked over Taako’s shoulder and pointed to a line in Barry’s torn book, “The being should then have the reproductive materials and cycles of any other being of that species and gender,” he read aloud. 

“Or you know my boyfriend could just read the line I skimmed,” Taako shrugged, “No big deal, not humiliating in the slightest,” he insisted. 

Lup smiled, “Ok, and option five?” 

“So option five is you do all the magic yourself. You make your own body fit you the way you want to do it,” he explained, “I could help you work on your transfiguration magic for a while, and then you can do the process yourself until you’re happy about it.” 

“Yeah ok,” Lup said, “So the plus side is I get to make my body and you have no idea what my junk looks like,” Taako nods, “And the downside is this could take months to figure out. So I would be stuck until I figured out the magic,” she said. 

“Yeah,” Taako said, “To be honest this is kind of my least favorite option.” 

“Why?” She asked.

“Cause this seems like what happened when we were kids and you weren’t exactly a piece of cake to deal with when we were kids,” Taako reasoned. 

“Yeah, I was a dick to you wasn’t I.”

“I mean yeah, but you were going through some shit,” he said.

“Right, and your life was a piece of cake,” she said as she flipped through the pages, “Ok so I agree though. That option seems like a pain in the ass and I really don’t want to have to learn new magic again just for this. Especially when there are 4.5 other options available.”

Kravitz cleared his throat, “Let’s be clear. There are 4 other options available. Option 1.5 exists only as an explanation of why it won’t work.” 

Barry couldn’t see her roll her eyes, but he could feel the force of it, “Fiiiine,” she said, “So I’m gonna go look this over and see which ones I like.” 

With that Lup was floating away with Taako’s book made of Kravitz and Barry’s books. The three men were left sitting at the table with the weight of the conversation sitting over them. 

“So,” Taako said, Leaning back in his chair and waving his wand to gather several glasses of tea toward the table, “Bets on which option she picks?”

“What?” Barry asked. He was taken aback by Taako’s carefree attitude. He seemed to be acting as though they had not just had a long discussion about the possible futures that would decide when he would get to hold his love again and how comfortable she would be in her body. 

“Bets on which option she picks? I think it’ll be option one,” Taako said. By now the tea was on the table and Taako had cooled it to perfect drinking temperature. He sipped it slowly. 

“Taako,” Kravitz spoke quietly, “I- listen guys I get why you think that one would work, and in theory, it makes the most sense. Just get the whole thing done before Lup’s actually in the body. But I really don’t know if the magic will work if the soul is trying to get into a body that it doesn’t recognize.”

“But what about Taako’s body makes that better?” asked Barry, “That’s not the body it left either.” 

“It may not be,” Kravitz argued, “but it’s genetically the same as the last body she was in.

Taako pushed a cup of tea in both of their directions, “Alright so we’ve circled this argument like 10 times in the last few days. I have had this discussion with both of you at least 3 times. The point is none of us actually know and all that matters now is what Lup wants to do,” he said, “And my money’s on Lup taking the big risk for the big reward.” 

“Yeah,” Barry admitted dejectedly, “You’re probably right.”

“Ok but I already put my money there and I’m pretty sure for this to work you have to bet on another option,” Taako said. 

Barry rolled his eyes, “Taako what if it doesn’t work though. Like what if we go through the whole 3-day spell to change the body and then she tries to take it over and it just rejects her. What happens then?” 

“Well then we try to switch it back and see if it works,” Taako said. 

“Yeah, I know logistically what the next steps are. I mean what happens to Lup. What happens when the magic tells her she doesn’t get to be in that body,” he asked. 

Taako shrugged, “She’ll be okay Barrold. I mean it’ll suck don’t get me wrong, but Lup’s tough.” 

“I know that,” Barry stared at his undrunk tea, “but I’m worried it’ll really hurt her if it doesn’t go well.”

“It might,” Taako admitted, “but she’ll come out the other end. She’ll get through it.”

“How do you know that?” Barry asked. He looked up at Taako and the elf could see the fear and desperation in his eyes. Barry was terrified. He wanted Lup to have her body and he wanted her to feel validated and safe, but above all of that, he wanted her to be okay. Taako wanted these things too. He had since Lup first came out to him. 

Taako used a slightly more serious tone and met Barry’s eyes, “I know because I’ve seen her do it before.” 

Barry considered this for a moment, “Oh yeah,” he said. Some of the tension in his shoulders relaxed. Life might get rough, Lup might have a really hard road ahead of her, but it was a road she’d traveled before and she was strong and tough and could do it again. 

“Barold I get why you’re worried about her, but she’s gonna be fine. Just cause ‘magic tells her she doesn’t get that body’ doesn’t mean she won’t get the body she wants. She and I are way too stubborn for that. And no matter what, within a year you’ll get to kiss her again,” Taako reassured him with a joking glint in his eyes. 

“Yeah I guess you’re right,” Barry said. He stared for a moment at the table in front of him then looked back up to Taako, “So when did you steal my books?” he asked. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: Do not attempt to steal Barry Bluejeans or Kravitz's books. The only reason this worked out okay for Taako is Barry is dating Taakos sister and Kravitz is dating Taako. If a reader attempts to destroy their books the author is not liable for any undeath that occurs.


	4. Making a Decision

Taako was looking through Barry’s books when Lup floated into the room. She shut the door behind her and Taako looked up. “Sup sis?”

“Do you think I should do the DNA change?” she asked. 

“Damn,” Taako said, “No hello, no ‘hows it going', no ‘I love your hair today?’” 

Lup shrugged, “Your hair is fine, but I’m serious.” 

Taako nodded, “I think you should do it.” 

“Even though Kravitz thinks it won’t work and it seems to make Barry incredibly nervous?” 

“Okay that’s true, but a lot of things make Barry nervous,” Taako reasoned.

“Taako be serious with me okay?” she asked. 

Taako nodded and turned to face her more fully, “Sorry, yeah. Yeah, I really think you should do it.”

“What if they’re right?” She asked. Her voice was small, not the loud confident Lup that Taako was used to. This was a version of Lup he only saw when they were alone. A Lup that was nervous and unsure of herself.

“Um, well if they’re right,” Taako took a deep breath, “If they're right then you’re still you. You’re still Lup, even if the necromantic magic says you don’t get the easy way to your body.” 

Lup nods, “Yeah but, what does that mean? If the magic doesn’t let me into a female body?” 

Taako shrugs, “It means the same thing it’s always meant. It means you’re trans.”

“I guess,” she says.

“No,” Taako says, “that’s all it means Lulu, don’t go reading into it too much. If that magic doesn’t work it doesn’t mean your not a girl ok. It’s not some universal sign that you’re not supposed to have your body the way you want it ok. That’s not the lesson here.” 

“Why not?” She asked, her voice sharp with fear. 

“‘Cause that’s not what it means to be a girl ok. Being a girl isn’t about having a body with boobs,” Taako cringed inwardly, he hadn’t been this sincere in months, “You are still you Lup. And no one we know is going to think any differently of you if you don’t fit into that body okay?” 

Lup nods. It’s a small nod, almost imperceptibly through the vague cloudiness of her Lich form.

“Honestly Lup,” Taako said reassuringly, “We all support you no matter what you do and we’re gonna think of you the same no matter what. If you don’t even want anything to change cause it’s too much of a hassle and you don’t need it then that’s fine. If you don’t want to do this cause you know it might mean three more months before you have a physical form again we all get it. No one we know is going to think that makes you any less of a girl or any less Lup. You being Lup has nothing to do with your tits okay?” 

She nodded again, a little bit bigger this time. 

“I mean if you want to then do it, and I’ll be there the whole time ‘cause there’s no way any other wizard is about to help you with this. No other chucklefuck has the skills.”

Lup laughed a little, “So you think it’ll work.”

“I don’t know,” Taako admitted, “But I think it’s a real possibility. I think that this magic is about something more than DNA no matter what my boyfriend says. I’ve been doing transfiguration for a long time and changing a person’s body has never affected their soul before. Not unless that’s the intended purpose. So I really think you should fit in that new body like a glove and I know how much that would mean to you. I think it’s definitely worth the risk.”

Lup nods, “Yeah I think so too.” 

  
  


Barry watched her cook, her mage hand doing all the work as she hovered nearby concentrating on the liquid boiling on the stove. "Lup, does it bother you that Taako seems so relaxed by all this?" He asked. It had been bugging him for days. Every time he discussed it with Taako, the elf waved it off like it was guaranteed that things would work out. He acted as if this was just another problem, another blip on his radar. 

"Relaxed about what?" Lup said casually. 

"About your new body," he clarified. 

Lup turned to face him, her shape was blurry as her magic focused on stirring so he couldn't read her expression. "You think he's relaxed about it?"

Barry eyed her curiously, "yeah, I mean every time I discuss it with him he seems chill. He just doesn't seem stressed about it."

Lup laughed a little, though it was foggier than her corporeal laugh, "I haven't seen Taako this stressed out about something in a long time. I mean except like, the hunger, but that was different. The dudes worrying himself sick."

Barry stared at her. She turned back to look at her dish and began adding more sauces and spices to the pot. He squinted to try and see if her face would reveal a hint of a joke, though none came through in her tone. 

"How can you tell?" He asked. 

Lup set the bowl to simmer and turned her form to Barry, gliding over to the seat next to him and sitting down. For a moment it was almost as if she was sitting there with him. "Babe, have you ever seen my brother prepare for anything?" She asked. 

Barry thought for a moment, "his dates with Kravitz?"

Lup seemed to nod, "Ok what about anything other than his appearance"

Barry chuckled and thought for a moment. He shook his head. 

"Exactly," said Lup, "I once saw his lesson plan for a guest lecture he was planning at his magic school of Tacos and all it said was ‘You’re awesome. Do Magic.'"

Barry laughed a little and smiled at her. He could see where she was headed. 

"Taako has prepared and researched 5 different ways I could go about this body melding, recorporealization thing. He read books. He called an expert in Neverwinter. He’s had like 4 sincere conversations in 3 weeks. He's panicked." 

Barry nodded and looked at the floor. After a hundred years it still seemed like the only person who could understand Taako was Lup. Some days he thought she understood Taako better than Taako understood Taako. He looked back up to Lup with a small worried smile, "are you panicked?" He asked. 

Lup's form didn't have to breathe, but Barry could feel her sigh. "I'm really anxious." She admitted. 

He nodded for her to continue. 

"I mean if this works then..." she drifted off for a moment, "If this works then I never have to think about it ever again. Then I'll be a woman, like real actual no questions about it elvish woman. Not only that, I'll be a female."

Barry could hear the emotion in her voice. The way she struggled to get the words out as if saying them out loud would doom them to failure. As if exposing these desires would keep them from happening. "Lup—” 

—"and I know I'm just as much of a woman without that. I know that this doesn't change it for you guys and that you'll see me the same no matter what and that does mean so much to me but- but I have to know." She grew quiet at the end, "I have to know because if I'm right. If Taako's right and this works..."

Barry watched the spectral woman in front of him. She lost herself in a world where she didn't have to second guess. A world where the deepest magic confirmed something she'd known all along. He allowed himself to get lost in this world. To see a Lup, somehow more confident than she has ever been. More sure of herself and her body. A Lup that doesn't use disguising spells to hide the scars of failed transitional magic that used to adorn her chest and inner thighs. He had found her beauty flawless then, maybe in this new world, she would see it too. 

"But," Lup said, breaking Barry from his thoughts, "if it doesn't then there's a lot of setbacks." She admitted. 

Barry nodded as he tried to hold back the tears glistening his eyes. He knew Lup would be too if Liches could cry. 

"If we're lucky I have to wait 3 days for Taako's spell to reverse the transition one he'll have cast. If we're unlucky that won't work and we'll have to wait several months for a new body to grow. Either way, I'll be switching into a body built from the same DNA as Taakos," she paused as if taking a deep breath, "and I just-God that would just suck right. I mean that would just suck." There was a bit of a sharp laugh in her voice. Barry could tell she was holding back the fear. She never really talked to him about her transition, it had never really mattered for them. That was the past, a blip on the radar of a shitty, and difficult childhood. What was a transition when you were switching between locations and meeting new people anyway?

"The social transition was easy," she said quietly. Barry watched her intently, wishing desperately he could hold her in his arms as she showed him this part of herself. "I mean I just told Taako and then when we showed up at the next group of people he introduced me as his sister. No one thought twice about it. I was too young to really have a feminine figure anyway." 

Barry nodded. She seemed so guarded, so weary, so tired of having to battle her own body for confidence. 

"But the physical part. God that sucked. None of it felt right. I hated it. It sucked. I was so bitter. I would snap at anyone who touched my hair," she pulled in a deep breath. Her powerful voice was shrunken, "one time a dumb asshole of a douche asked if I had any tits under the sweater I was wearing. He was just some brat. Some dude with a small dick, but it stung," she paused again and Barry watched her gather the strength to push forward, "I cried on Taako for so long that night. It was also the first night I tried magic on myself."

Barry did know that story. Her old body had a thin white scar across the chest, just under her collar bone. 

She sighed again, "this time would be loads easier though," Barry nodded. It would. "For starters, I wouldn't be the one doing the transfiguration magic. That never really was my thing. Also, Taako said I could just meditate through the whole thing and he'd be done in like 4 days with all the spells. You said I'd want to sleep for four days anyway after getting a new body."

Barry nods and smiles. Either way, things would be ok. The spells Taako had researched would be a little painful, but Lup insisted the pain wouldn't be a problem. 

"The only problem I can see with that plan is I'll have to tell Taako which specific versions of the spell I want him to cast so that the parts all look the way I want them to," she admitted. 

Barry's face turned as red as her robe.

"You know," Lup floated closer to him, leaning forward so Barry could feel her presence, "You could help me pick out some of that if it gets to that point."

Barry's blush deepened as he stared at the floor. Lup waved her hand through his field of vision and moved for him to look at her. He did. Even as a Lich he was struck by her beauty. "Yeah ok," he said, leaning closer to her subconsciously, longing to be able to touch her, hold her, kiss her, be with her. 

"Soon," she whispered, reading his mind. 

"Soon," he echoed. He closed his eyes and could feel her shift. A strange pressure met his forehead and he knew Lup was doing her best to imitate kissing him there. He smiled as a deep longing built inside of him. 

The door slammed open and both of them jumped. 

“Whose fucking up my kitchen?” Taako shouts. 

Lup and Both look over to see the stew boiling over and beginning to smoke on the stove. Taako was using both his hands as well as a mage hand to try and assess and fix the damage. 

“Barry, why didn’t you say something?” Lup asked, moving over to help. 

“Wait you let Barry cook?” Taako asked as he turned the burner off and moved the pot to a cooler spot. 

“Hell no,” She defended, “But I don’t exactly have a sense of smell at the moment so he should’ve smelled the smoke.” 

“Okay,” Taako said, a bit of bite in his voice, “Using your boyfriend as a smoke alarm is not a good cooking strategy.” Lup tried to reach over to grab the spoon, but Taako’s mage hand was headed in the same direction. He swatted at her hand and let out a huff, “I can never tell where your hands are going. Just let me fix this before you two burn the room down.” 

Lup backed away and from his vantage point, Barry could tell Taako’s words had left their mark. He stands up and goes to stand near her. He puts his hand near hers so she can feel his presence. 

A few tense moments later Taako finished cleaning up his mess. “Okay,” He turned to face them and pointed his spoon between them, “No more Barry in the kitchen while Lup is cooking until this one can smell again.” 

“This happened one time,” Lup argued,” And you’re allowed to have Kravitz in here.” 

“First of all,” Taako countered, “I have a sense of smell. Second of all, Kravitz is also not allowed to cook in here.” 

“Why not,” Barry interjected curiously. 

“He knows what he did,” Taako says. He turns back to the stove and casts one last prestidigitation. Some of the tension leaves his shoulders and he seems to calm down some. “What were you two doing anyway?” 

Lup was not as quick to calm down, “Hmm, last I checked that’s not your business.”

“Hmm,” Taako replied, “well last I checked you nearly burned down my kitchen.”

“I didn’t nearly burn it down. Barry would have noticed sooner or later.” She pushed back. 

Barry tried to pretend they didn’t all know that this wasn’t necessarily true. He tended to be oblivious to the rest of the world when he was with Lup, smoke scents included. 

Taako sighed and began to turn the burner back on and assess the damage, “Whatever. What do you think of me starting this over and inviting Magnus and Merle to dinner?”

“Sure,” Lup said. She still seemed tense, but she was dropping it too, “Is Cap’n’port around?” She asks. 

Barry shakes his head, “No he left on another cruise. He’ll be back in time for candle nights though. I think Merle has his kids around though for another few days. They go back to their mother’s this weekend.”

“Okay,” Taako started adding some spices to the pot, “So if we add them, Kravitz, and Angus what’s the total?”

“Angus?” Lup asked. 

“Yeah, he’s good with Mookie, and Mavis thinks he’s funny. I figure why not. Kid’ll find out about the dinner anyway,” Taako explains. 

“Fair,” Lup says, “So the only three that are in town that you didn’t count are Carey, Killian, and Lucretia.” At her name, both Lup and Barry watch Taako closely. He still wasn’t actively hanging out with Lucretia. He had stopped full on refusing to hear her name, but the progress was slow. 

He looked tenser than he had a moment before, but not angry, “Well if you’d listened to me closely I actually hadn’t counted yet. I was hoping one of you would do that for me.” 

Barry turned to Lup, “Lucretia isn’t in town. She left yesterday for Rockport with Avi. They’re doing some diplomacy or something.” 

“Oh, ok good to know,” Lup said. 

They both watched as Taako’s shoulders visibly relaxed as he stirred the pot. “Okay well either way I don’t think I have enough food for more people. However, I don’t actually know because no one is counting for me.”

Barry started to count off their group on his fingers. “Nine people,” He announces finally.”

“Okay,” Taako said, moving to grab more ingredients,” I can easily make this dish so it feeds approximately 10.”

Lup shakes her head a little, “Barry it’s 8.” 

Barry looks over at her confused and starts to recount. 

“It’s 8 unless Taako’s making a bowl for me, which would be fine, but kind of pointless,” she explained. 

Taako shrugged, “That’s fine. Mookie and his dad both eat for 2.” 

“Yeah,” Lup nods, “Good point.”

They all sit and stew in the awkward silence for a moment before Lup moves away and Barry feels her hand leave the space near his. “I’m going to go head upstairs,” She says, “Let me know when it’s getting close ok?” 

“Will do,” Barry assures her as she floats through the walls and up to her room. 

After a moment of awkward silence where Barry is deciding if he wants to leave the room or not Taakko speaks. “Was she already on edge or did I really piss her off?” He asks. 

Barry sighs, “You didn’t help, but she was already a bit worked up.”

“You two fight?” he asked, a hint of worry in his voice. 

“No,” Barry reassured him, “Just talking.”

“Seemed intense when I came in.”

“It was.”

“She’s okay though, right?” 

Barry sighs and runs his hand over his face, “Yeah she’ll be alright. Just anxious about the whole body thing.”

Taako nods, this seems to calm him down, “She’ll be ok.” 

Barry looked up and met Taako’s eyes. The elf was looking over at him as he stirred the pot. “How do you know she’ll be okay Taako? How are you so certain.” 

Taako’s expression changed. He looked as serious as Barry had ever seen him, “I know cause I was there the first time. If she made it through that- If she made it through when she didn’t know there was an end in sight she can do it this time. This time she knows what she wants. It's just a matter of time.”

Barry nodded, trying to feel hopeful about it but not having much luck, “Yeah, I guess that’s true.” 

Taako turned fully away from cooking and stood in front of Barry. “Barold she’ll be okay. She might not like the body she gets into, but I can fix that. And no matter what happens in that weird body growing container, she has something this time that she didn’t have last time.” 

“Yeah,” Barry acknowledged, looking at the floor, “She knows the outcome.”

“I mean, yeah,” Taako said, “But I was talking about you dufus.”

Barry blushed and stared harder at the floor as Taako went back to making their dinner.

“She’ll get through this, we all will,” Taako told him. 

Barry took a deep breath and nodded to himself. “I’m gonna marry her,” He told Taako, “Once the dust has settled some.” 

“Yeah, she told me,” Taako said. Barry looked up and saw a small smile on Taako’s face. 

“We never did it before ‘cause the customs kept changing every cycle and we didn’t know what we wanted. But now it just feels silly not to be.”

Taako nodded and looked back at him, “I mean you two have basically been married since the Legato conservatory, and if not then when you did your freaky necromancy magic and became liches.” 

“Might as well make it official,” Barry shrugged. Taako was full-on smiling as he stirred the stew now. He would deny it if Barry ever told anyone, but he was happy for their family. “Thanks for helping her through this Taako.” 

That was a bridge too far, the sincerity was too much for Taako and he shrugged, “I mean I’m the world's greatest- no, the universe's greatest transfiguration wizard. Least I could do was help my dufus sister.” 

Barry let out a small laugh, “I’m gonna go check on her,” he said, “Unless you want my help with the cooking?” 

“Nope!” Taako pushed Barry out with a mage hand, “No no no no no. No helping me with cooking. No one helps Taako from TV with cooking. Nope.” 

Barry left the room chuckling and went upstairs to be near Lup. 


	5. Emergence

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Final Chapter! Thanks to everyone whose reading

It was just her and Barry in the room. Taako wanted to be there, but Lup insisted that he and Kravitz wait outside until she could get a robe on. She knew they were right outside the door. Ahead of her was the brackish green fluid. Through her phantasmal vision, she couldn’t quite make out what was inside. Barry had assured her the body Taako had helped sculpt was beautiful.

It had taken Taako 3 long days of meditation and spell casting to finish the transformation. He insisted it was easy, but she watched him after he stood up and could tell he was nervous and exhausted. He’d kept looking back to make sure he’d done well. She saw him gripping Kravitz’s hand tightly as they walked into the hallway outside of the room. The elf was panicked.

Lup was too. Barry had told her how disorienting it was to go back into a new body. He’d warned her that there was a dissonance between the physical form and the spiritual form that needed time to calm down. He’d told her every detail he could. How the first thing he could feel was always his fingers and the last was always his toes. How his brain always felt a little foggy. How when the seal broke and he spilled out it took his legs a moment to remember how to walk.

They’d spent hours talking about it and when he slept Lup spent hours reading about it. Neither of them knew what would be different for her. Her body wasn’t the same genetically as the one she’d left. There was a changed variable that they just couldn’t account for.

For better or worse, they were about to see the outcome of their gamble. She turned toward Barry and saw him nod. She leaned down so their foreheads matched up.

“I’ll see you in a minute,” Barry said. He was holding a bright red robe in his arms. On the table nearby were some comfy pants and a crop top she could slip into once she was ready.

Lup nodded, “I’ll see you in a minute.” She tried not to notice the tears in Barry’s eyes as she floated forward. She moved into the container and glanced at Barry one last time before disappearing within its green goop.

Once her spectral form was within the container, she could feel her body’s presence. Her spirit pulled toward it and for a moment she felt herself come undone. Then she was inside. It wasn’t right. She could feel it. It wasn’t right. It was rejecting her. The fibers of her spectral form pushed back with an arcane force as she tried to push into her body. The magic that was her lich form strained. It was trying to squeeze into this new shape. It didn’t want to be a physical form.

The form wasn’t the problem. The form wasn’t the problem, it was that it was physical. Lup tried to calm down. She tried to meditate and focus on her body. She could feel the arcane energies combatting one another. The powerful necromancy that Barry had performed was on a different wavelength than the magic that flowed through her. They rang out like a clashing chord.

She tuned her body. Focused deeply and calmly on her arcane force. She tried to slow it down. She thought of Barry, her love. He was outside waiting for her. With this new body, she would be able to hold him, to comfort him. When he woke up at night and couldn’t find her she would be able to pull him into her arms and tell him she was here. She was alive and was never leaving him again.

She thought of Taako outside. He was waiting for her too. He would be insisting to Kravitz that he was fine, but she was certain his toes were tapping within his shoes. Just like that day, the best day ever. That day he’d pretended everything was fine. He’d pretended he was nothing but excited, but she knew him better. Throughout their life, she’d tuned her senses to pick up on the little things he did. Now she tuned her senses to match the new body.

The frequencies melded together into a beautiful harmony. Lup could feel the tips of her fingers. She forced herself to remain calm. She couldn’t celebrate yet; it wasn’t over yet. The fingers were the easy part. The sensation of a cool fluid spread up her arms and she felt goosebumps rise on her new form. She could feel them. As she tried to calm down, she began to feel her heart beating through her.

Lup braced for the impact. She braced for the dissonance with her chest that she’d felt her whole life. She braced for the uncomfortable feeling she’d told Barry she was ready for. She braced for the part Kravitz had warned her would be the worst. Connecting with her arms and legs would come naturally if she could focus her strength on the things which grounded her to reality. The parts of her body Taako’d changed would be another story. Kravitz and Barry both agreed they probably would struggle more. 

Lup had felt this before though. She knew what it was to feel as though her chest wasn’t hers. The parts she had were built for someone else long before she became a lich. Her arcane powers had always functioned in a mismatched body. She was confident she could handle whatever dissonance her new body threw at her.

It wasn’t there. The disconnect between her body and her magic wasn’t there. Her chest was her own. The magic hummed through her in gorgeous chords. Singing in harmony through every part of her. The sensation of the cold fluid on her new nipples tickled her and she wished she could scream with joy. The happiness spread throughout her body and everything fell in place. Her heartbeat in her chest as sensations filled her. The cold fluid met her heat and she could feel the difference. It was subtle, but this was not the vagina she’d been left with after years of trying. There was no need for spells to give her a proper sensation, she had everything she needed. She had a vagina. No questions asked.

A slash opened in front of her and she could hear the fluid rush past her ears as it fell forward. She could hear through ears, not through the fuzz of her form. Lup stumbled forward, her legs unsure how to cope with this sensation. She opened her eyes and they stung with fluid. Even the pain was exhilarating.

Someone caught her and she could hear Barry’s sobs. He wiped at her eyes so she could open them.

She could see. Not through a layer of magic but really see. There was a little freckle on Barry’s nose right next to his left eye. She couldn’t see it as a lych, but now she couldn’t stop staring. She couldn’t keep up with her senses as Barry moved her and draped her with a robe. When she was finally able to focus and reorient herself she looked down. There was her body, draped in a bright red robe. Her body.

“I’d forgotten how good I looked,” She said, taking in the new form. Lup looked up at Barry and could feel him thinking the same thing. An old sensation filled her as love swelled through every fiber of her being, “I’m about to smooch your fucking brains out babe.”

And she did.

Until Taako knocked on the door, “Hey Barold, is my sister in there or what? Cause like we heard the seal pop 30 seconds ago and cha’boy’s got a dinner to finish cooking.”

Lup rolled her eyes. She moved to run and throw the door open but couldn’t quite stand up. It had been a while since she’d had a physical form. She was a little rusty.

Barry helped her stand up and went to the door, “let me get this one, you can have the next one Lup.” She smiled as he opened the door.

Once she saw Taako she stretched out her arms to greet him, “Look at me Taako! It worked!”

Taako smiled bigger than she’d ever seen. He ran forward and grabbed her in a hug. His familiar touch melted her. All the fears and anxieties she’d felt came out as she sobbed into his shoulder.

Taako shrugged, “I knew it would.” His voice was even, but his hug was tight. 

Through her tears Lup could see Kravitz. He was nervously standing in the door. Lup couldn’t tell if he was nervous being around the necromancy or if he’d accidentally seen Lup naked before Taako had hugged her.

“I should put some clothes on,” She said into Taako’s ear.

“Yeah probably,” he agreed, “But the body worked well?”

Lup laughed, “Dude the boobs were the easiest part. It just fit,” she said. Taako’s grin grew impossibly wider and she could see the tension in his shoulders relax. This was a big deal for her, but it was also big for him. This was her journey, but he’d been there all along. He needed this to work too.

There was a sob behind her, and she tried to turn to see Barry. Her legs didn’t quite make it all the way around but Taako steadied her.

“It just worked?” asked Barry.

Lup nodded, “Yeah babe, it just worked.”

And just like that everyone was crying. Barry ran to hug Lup and they held each other for a while. It wasn’t until Taako reminded them that Lup was still mostly naked that they broke apart. After she was clothed again Lup ran over and hugged Kravitz. He didn’t quite know what to do with the hug but accepted it, nonetheless.

As she let go of Kravitz Barry directed her towards a mirror in the corner of the room. She held his arm as she walked, her body was not quite used to walking yet. Lup stepped into view of herself and immediately took her own breath away.

“Like what you see?” Asked Taako.

Lup nodded, “It’s me Taako.”

Barry squeezed her hand, “It’s always been you, Lup,” he said gently, “But God am I glad this worked out for you.”

Lup nodded again, tears springing into her eyes. Determined to pull herself together she wiped them away, “Oh my God I’m a woman!”

“Well I mean,” Taako interjected, “You’re a female elf.”

Lup turned to him and raised an eyebrow, “sorry I know my ears are new to the whole hearing thing, but I really don’t remember asking.”

“You didn’t,” Barry provided.

“I didn’t ask. So, hush,” she turned back to herself and posed for the mirror, “Barry look at me!”

“I haven’t been able to stop,” he said.

“Yeah but like,” she moved her hands up, shakily standing on her own, “Look at my tits!” she cupped them. Behind her Taako rolled his eyes while Kravitz averted his.

Barry blushed, “Yeah, I mean they're great.”

“Great?” She said, “They’re fantastic.” She couldn’t stop touching them. They were real. They were hers. They were all-natural female elf breasts. They were more sensitive, they were rounder, more natural.

“Yeah,” Barry was bright red, “They really are Lup.”

“Alright,” Taako interjected, “You two can get a room later. I have dinner cooking so we’re gonna go eat now ok?”

Kravitz laughed nervously, “Yeah that sounds lovely.”

Lup turned back to Barry, “Can you give us like 2 minutes?” she asked her brother.

Taako sighed dramatically, “Fine, but if I come back in two minutes and you two are being inappropriate, I’m gonna be mad.”

Lup began to make a retort about Taako only taking 2 minutes when Barry cut her off, “We’ll behave. Go finish dinner.” He took Lup’s hand and squeezed it. She nodded.

Once Kravitz and Taako left the room she wrapped her arms around Barry. They held each other tight. His hand moved up to wrap itself in her hair. She snuggled her face into his neck and breathed in the scent of him. She could feel his soft skin against her lips.

“I missed you so much Lup,” Barry whispered into her hair.

Lup nodded, trying to hold back tears. She pressed a kiss into his neck and pressed her hand into the small of his back to move him closer.

“God Lup, I’m so happy for you,” he murmured. His voice cracked and she lost it. She started shaking and sobbing into him. The fear and relief mixed with the joy and grief. She squeezed her arms around him so she could feel his heart beat against her chest.

“I’m so sorry,” was all she could say.

His hands ran through her hair and up and down her back, “Don’t apologize babe, we did what we had to do.”

“I just- I- I feel so much right now and I want you to know that I love you so much,” she said. Her voice cracking in the middle as she pushed the words through her sobs.

“I know Lup,” he assured her, “I know and I love you so much too. I’m just happy you’re back in my arms.” He pulled back for a moment to press a kiss into her forehead.

She leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. They were just as soft as she remembered. He was just as gentle and hesitant as she remembered. She kissed him, hoping all her joy could be felt as she held herself impossibly close to him. 

He pulled away and leaned their foreheads together. A breathy sob escaped his lips, “Lup you’re here.”

She laughed a little, “I’ve got a body again Barry! I- I-” the weight of this hit her. She hadn’t had a body in 12 years. She wasn’t stuck in an umbrella anymore. She wasn’t stuck hovering just above her family as they ate. Barry held her up as her knees buckled with the intense emotions. “I- I can- I- I’ve got-” She kept trying to explain it, but no words could. 

Barry ran his hand over her wet hair and whispered softly into her ear. She could feel the slight tingle of his breath on the side of her face and this soft sensation made her cry even harder. 

Unable to hold her up anymore the pair melted to the ground. Barry held Lup close, wrapping her in his as she took in all of the new sensations. He held her close, reveling in the familiarity of Lup. She was back. 

As she got a hold of herself she started to kiss him again, less gently this time. This time she kissed him like she really wanted to. She kissed him with the fervor of a woman who hadn’t been able to kiss her man for 12 years. Barry had no complaints. He kissed her back and held her close. She overpowered him and he was on his back, Lup on top of him kissing. Her lips were everything. He couldn’t think of anything else. 

He couldn’t think of anything else until Taako barged through the door. “I knew you two couldn’t keep your mitts off each other. I’m lucky I didn’t wait 30 more seconds or who knows what I’d be walking in on.” 

Lup pulled her face an inch away from Barry’s and breathed heavily for a moment before calling back, “I think you know exactly what you would have been walking in on.” 

Barry felt his face go red, but he stole another kiss anyway. Lup giggled and he felt like he could melt into the floor at the sound. 

“Whatever,” Taako said. Barry didn’t look at him but thought he could hear a smile, “Is your new body hungry Lup?”

Barry reveled in every twitch her face made as she contemplated his question. He hadn’t been able to see her in this much detail in too long. He was going to spend the next 12 years memorizing every part of her face.

“Yeah I guess, I’ll eat him out later,” she said as she pushed up to sit on Barry’s thighs. He nearly choked on his own spit at her comment. 

Taako came over and the two of them helped get Lup steady on her feet. It had been 12 years since she’d had to walk. She tried to insist she didn’t need help, but after nearly falling twice she accepted Barry’s offer to help. He put his hand around her waist and she put her arm around his shoulders. 

By the time they made it home she’s steadier, but it’s never suggested that she leaves Barry’s side. The night is full of laughter and fun. Merle and Magnus make it over to visit, and just as things start to calm down Carrie and Killian show up and the party gets going again. Lup falls asleep fast that night in Barry’s arms. They hold each other close until long into the morning. Taako makes a late breakfast and they have a lazy day at home. No one has anywhere to be. No one has any battles to fight. At least for that day, there's no rush, there’s just peace. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading! I really love this story cause it's just a very happy magical transition. Comments and Kudos are appreciated! Have a great day


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